The song lyrics were written by the band Van Halen, as they were asked to write a song for the 1979 movie "Over the Edge" starring Matt Dillon. The movie (and the lyrics, although more obliquely) are about bored, rebellious youth with nothing better to do than get into trouble. If you see the movie, these lyrics will make more sense. It's a great movie if you grew up in the 70s/80s you'll definitely remember some of these characters from your own life. Fun fact, after writing the song, Van Halen decided not to let the movie use it.
(Roosevelt Franklin)
Its like, one time till’ the break of dawn like
Blacking out to your favorite song like
Making love till the early morn’ like
Waking up and your love is gone like
Feeling like you just cant go on like
Everything in the worlds gone wrong like
One life one love to live and something’s got to give
(So lets get it)
Here I stand, man apart
Broken down, life’s so hard
These days try to play my part
But some days even that’s to hard
So I drink till’ I’m drunk now, to high to come down
Hide in the shadows and run for the gallows
Stand up for battling, confront the demons
And try to make good of this world before I leave it and
They say its better to give then to receiving and
To tell the truth I’m much better at receiving and
I cant sleep at night from all the creeping in
I could swear I feel the city breathing in
When I walk the streets late in the evening
I can feel the sadness, anger, seething
Mother earth still cries like babies teething and
I paint a picture with words to make you see ‘em and
I picture life as a woman with brown skin
N ice smile, black hair, titties like mountains
Been around 28 years and still counting
Stress and the tension be constantly doubting
I want to reach out
Grab life right by the face
Lean in and take a taste
But im afraid some days that it just aint’ safe
Cause to me death looks the same just different name
And I had the same friends for years
The same taste in beers
The same basic fears
I’m glad I’m still here and can speak to ya’ll
Cause for me man the sky done fall and shit shattered
Broken parts that I could not fix and
Chemicals that I should not mix and
Who’d of thought it would come to this man
Who’d of thought it would come to this
Chorus: x2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
(Slug)
It’s like you don’t even seem to give a fuck like
You wait around for me to pick it up it’s like
Bring it on now its so rough like
There’s more to life than just kicking dust like
Take the hate and tuck it into love like
I’ll be alright If I hit some luck its like
One life one love to live and something’s got to give
( So lets get it )
As much as I want to believe I don’t
As much as I want to be free I won’t
Still choke on your song’s
You wrote the notes and I just sing along
Still waiting for the bridge so I can drop my last verse and let It live
But no you still find that spot to haunt
Inside of too many thoughts, too many wants
I’m drunk again, sit and spin
The half full glass act’s like my best friend
Laugh and grin bear my soul
Grab my heart and tear it whole
Put me out of my steps, set m e down
Pull me into abyss and let me drown
When the breath grits and death grips
Maybe I can stop trying to run from these head drips
Spoke like one knew better
But I’m damned in the trap that I might of help you set up
Don’t let up, keep the pace
You can need your space or you can read my face
Silence say’s so fucking much
Make me down my shot just to up the lunch?
We’ll give it back, release your claws
It belongs in Sean in between the floors
Right to left, Fights to sex
Looked at your smile every night you slept
Now it’s like I don’t sleep
Cause this addiction to hold you fits me so deep
Broken parts that I tried to fix and
Chemicals that I tried to mix.
Go find your shit its time you dip
Cause you remind me of the bitch that made me rhyme like this
Chorus x 2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
(Jean Grae)
It’s been a long night like Alaska winter
Forced ….from dinner approaching thinner
The weight minimize while the stress builds
Chest heavy as I wonder how the Crystal Meth feels
Eyelids burning, determined to shut
But the churn in the gut says keep on Jean
Sleep’s for weak people lean on some speed
But now every time I breathe my beats wrong
Skips when I lay, breaks fast when I smoke
Trips when I flip so I have to know to stay calmer
The drama diminished, my armor defended
Still stained with tequila and Guinness
The skin erupts in bloodspots that I can’t stop scratching
Imagine you bleed when you sleep
So I bleed on the sheets in orderly passion
the weak scarlet tears in enormous rations.
Regardless fear is a normal passion
I’ll keep this in mind when my hands reacting
I’ll scratch out my eyes if they ever get tired
Of doing my late night brain punishing action
Stay awake balling, Scream to the heavens
Plead for a deed that would just lay me level
I hate all the test’s God please or the Devil on request
Let Jean have a peace of rest, please
Chorus x 2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
Its like, one time till’ the break of dawn like
Blacking out to your favorite song like
Making love till the early morn’ like
Waking up and your love is gone like
Feeling like you just cant go on like
Everything in the worlds gone wrong like
One life one love to live and something’s got to give
(So lets get it)
Here I stand, man apart
Broken down, life’s so hard
These days try to play my part
But some days even that’s to hard
So I drink till’ I’m drunk now, to high to come down
Hide in the shadows and run for the gallows
Stand up for battling, confront the demons
And try to make good of this world before I leave it and
They say its better to give then to receiving and
To tell the truth I’m much better at receiving and
I cant sleep at night from all the creeping in
I could swear I feel the city breathing in
When I walk the streets late in the evening
I can feel the sadness, anger, seething
Mother earth still cries like babies teething and
I paint a picture with words to make you see ‘em and
I picture life as a woman with brown skin
N ice smile, black hair, titties like mountains
Been around 28 years and still counting
Stress and the tension be constantly doubting
I want to reach out
Grab life right by the face
Lean in and take a taste
But im afraid some days that it just aint’ safe
Cause to me death looks the same just different name
And I had the same friends for years
The same taste in beers
The same basic fears
I’m glad I’m still here and can speak to ya’ll
Cause for me man the sky done fall and shit shattered
Broken parts that I could not fix and
Chemicals that I should not mix and
Who’d of thought it would come to this man
Who’d of thought it would come to this
Chorus: x2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
(Slug)
It’s like you don’t even seem to give a fuck like
You wait around for me to pick it up it’s like
Bring it on now its so rough like
There’s more to life than just kicking dust like
Take the hate and tuck it into love like
I’ll be alright If I hit some luck its like
One life one love to live and something’s got to give
( So lets get it )
As much as I want to believe I don’t
As much as I want to be free I won’t
Still choke on your song’s
You wrote the notes and I just sing along
Still waiting for the bridge so I can drop my last verse and let It live
But no you still find that spot to haunt
Inside of too many thoughts, too many wants
I’m drunk again, sit and spin
The half full glass act’s like my best friend
Laugh and grin bear my soul
Grab my heart and tear it whole
Put me out of my steps, set m e down
Pull me into abyss and let me drown
When the breath grits and death grips
Maybe I can stop trying to run from these head drips
Spoke like one knew better
But I’m damned in the trap that I might of help you set up
Don’t let up, keep the pace
You can need your space or you can read my face
Silence say’s so fucking much
Make me down my shot just to up the lunch?
We’ll give it back, release your claws
It belongs in Sean in between the floors
Right to left, Fights to sex
Looked at your smile every night you slept
Now it’s like I don’t sleep
Cause this addiction to hold you fits me so deep
Broken parts that I tried to fix and
Chemicals that I tried to mix.
Go find your shit its time you dip
Cause you remind me of the bitch that made me rhyme like this
Chorus x 2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
(Jean Grae)
It’s been a long night like Alaska winter
Forced ….from dinner approaching thinner
The weight minimize while the stress builds
Chest heavy as I wonder how the Crystal Meth feels
Eyelids burning, determined to shut
But the churn in the gut says keep on Jean
Sleep’s for weak people lean on some speed
But now every time I breathe my beats wrong
Skips when I lay, breaks fast when I smoke
Trips when I flip so I have to know to stay calmer
The drama diminished, my armor defended
Still stained with tequila and Guinness
The skin erupts in bloodspots that I can’t stop scratching
Imagine you bleed when you sleep
So I bleed on the sheets in orderly passion
the weak scarlet tears in enormous rations.
Regardless fear is a normal passion
I’ll keep this in mind when my hands reacting
I’ll scratch out my eyes if they ever get tired
Of doing my late night brain punishing action
Stay awake balling, Scream to the heavens
Plead for a deed that would just lay me level
I hate all the test’s God please or the Devil on request
Let Jean have a peace of rest, please
Chorus x 2
I can’t sleep tonight I’m up by the light of the moon in my empty room and it’s
One day since you ran away, and it’s one day since I went insane so I
Drink beer to erase your face and I medicate to escape this place and I
Can’t sleep in a world of pain cause nothing seems the same
Lyrics submitted by Se7en7
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It seems like this is about fear. The shit that keeps you awake.
Roos'- He's scared of Life. Slug- Obviously, his female problems Grae- Meth addiction, or previous addiction.
I don't know, just a thought.
To be honest my thoughts are that there all singing about the same thing but from different perspectives we can all live the same problems as one another and react and interpret them differently first being about how this person managed to become his life and made him fill he could do so much more but in losing that person it feels like nothing but Presser and stress from what could of been accomplished slug lays it down a but more forward but hits some real points that anyone who's been through an experience like that could understand and last she's talking about how it feels to have no straight so you turn to addiction something that could destroy you to try and prove your strong and to try and take control and all the spite and anger that leads to making something like that your new home but that's just what I see in it I do also relate to alot of what's said and know it from all three angles its not fun and can show you a side of yourself you never thought to exist but everything before that is amazing and completely worth it being haunted by the memory of it
To be honest my thoughts are that there all singing about the same thing but from different perspectives we can all live the same problems as one another and react and interpret them differently first being about how this person managed to become his life and made him fill he could do so much more but in losing that person it feels like nothing but Presser and stress from what could of been accomplished slug lays it down a but more forward but hits some real points that anyone who's been through an experience like that could understand and last she's talking about how it feels to have no straight so you turn to addiction something that could destroy you to try and prove your strong and to try and take control and all the spite and anger that leads to making something like that your new home but that's just what I see in it I do also relate to alot of what's said and know it from all three angles its not fun and can show you a side of yourself you never thought to exist but everything before that is amazing and completely worth it being haunted by the memory of it